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Moves, our roundup of job changes in L.A. tech, is presented by Interchange.LA, dot.LA's recruiting and career platform connecting Southern California's most exciting companies with top tech talent. Create a free Interchange.LA profile here—and if you're looking for ways to supercharge your recruiting efforts, find out more about Interchange.LA's white-glove recruiting service by emailing Sharmineh O’Farrill Lewis (sharmineh@dot.LA). Please send job changes and personnel moves to moves@dot.la.
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Riot Games has named Marc Merrill as its new president of games. Merrill co-founded the video game developer and previously served as its co-CEO until 2017, before stepping down and assuming the role of co-chairman.
Snap has hired Resh Sidhu as global director of Arcadia, the social media firm’s creative studio for branded augmented reality. Sidhu joins from ad agency Barbarian, where she was chief creative officer. Snap also named Jeff Miller as Acadia’s executive director and Lidiia Bogdanovych as Arcadia’s executive producer; they will continue to serve as Snap’s global head of creative strategy and director of lens design, respectively.
Animation studio Invisible Universe has appointed David Levy as chief creative officer. Levy most recently served as director of animation at Disney+.
AI-powered fintech platform Camino Financial has promoted Michael Chamberlayne to chief financial officer. Chamberlayne was previously the company’s senior vice president of finance and corporate development.
Relativity Space, an aerospace company that designs and produces 3D-printed rockets, has hired Mariana Garavaglia as chief business and people officer. Garavaglia joins from Peloton, where she served as chief operating officer.
Fintech banking platform Dave has hired Michael Goodbody as chief marketing officer. Goodbody was previously vice president of marketing and growth at Credit Karma’s Money division.
Kollectiff, a Web3 venture studio, has hired Rupert Runewitsch as chief operating officer and chief growth officer. Runewitsch was previously a strategic advisor at amp&go and founded the startup Vista.
Marketing research company MarketCast has hired Jenna Lauer as its new head of brand and custom research. Lauer joins from market research agency Hall & Partners, where she served as managing partner. MarketCast also promoted Zoë Friend to lead the company’s Content Insights practice.
Video game developer Scopely has appointed Salaam Coleman Smith to its board of directors. Coleman Smith is currently a director on the boards of Pinterest and Gap, Inc.
Walt Disney Company is restructuring its operations to prioritize streaming as the pandemic reshuffles the entertainment industry.
With the new structure, there will be three content groups: movies, sports and general entertainment such as television shows. Another arm will determine on which platforms content will be distributed.
"Managing content creation distinct from distribution will allow us to be more effective and nimble in making the content consumers want most, delivered in the way they prefer to consume it," said CEO Bob Chapek in a statement released on Monday. The distribution group will be led by Kareem Daniel, former head of the company's consumer products business.
Walt Disney Studios co-chairs Alan F. Horn and Alan Bergman will oversee Studios, the division focused on movies and theatrical franchises. Media Networks Chairman Peter Rice will oversee General Entertainment, including television series and long form content for streaming and cable. ESPN head Jimmy Pitaro, will run the Sports group
All four content group leaders and Daniel will report to CEO Bob Chapek.
The move comes as the entertainment giant continues to be pummeled by the pandemic. Last month, the company announced that it would layoff 28,000 workers from its theme parks. Disneyland in Southern California remains closed and attendance at Disney World in Florida is lagging. Movie theaters across the country have also been closed or not at full capacity.
But Disney has found success in streaming. In August, the company announced that it had 60 million subscribers to its Disney Plus streaming service. Add in ESPN+ and Hulu, and the company's total subscriber count now tops 100 million.
Like other studios, Disney has opted to shift theatrical releases online, moving "Mulan" to Disney+ and additional for $30. Disney also recently announced the Pixar film "Soul" will be released on the platform on Dec. 25.- Disney Loses $1.4 Billion in Operating Income Due To COVID-19 ... ›
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Snapchatters can now watch movie trailers, coordinate theater trips and purchase movie tickets in the app – with the "Movie Tickets by Atom" Snap Mini.
The new feature was rolled out just as theaters are starting to open in some markets (though not yet in California or New York), and studios have finally (we think?) committed to premiering several new releases (e.g. "Bill & Ted Face The Music" on August 28th; "Tenet" on September 3rd; "Wonder Woman 1984" on October 2nd).
The debut last Friday of mid-budget thriller "Unhinged" starring Russell Crowe kicked off what will be an litmus test of consumers' desire to return to theaters. The film only grossed $4 million at the U.S. and Canada box office, but industry insiders hope it whet the appetite of moviegoers.
Will people come back? Santa Monica-based Atom Tickets is optimistic. It recently surveyed 16,000 of its cinephile users and found 74% said they would be ready to come back to theaters within one month. Of those surveyed, 40% said they would come back immediately. The most commonly cited safety measure that respondents said they wanted to see was spaced seating, followed by wearing masks for both staff and guests.
"With safety measures in place and movie fans eager to return to the movies, we knew the timing was right to launch Atom's ticketing experience on Snapchat," said Atom Tickets co-founder and chairman Matt Bakal.
What is a Snap Mini? As announced at its Partner Summit earlier this year, Snap now incorporates simplified third-party apps directly within its platform. This particular feature lets users access Atom Tickets without having to leave the Snapchat interface.
Atom Tickets was founded in 2014. Its partners, which will support the Mini, include AMC Theaters, Cinemark, Harkins Theatres and ArcLight Cinemas. The company has raised $110 million and its backers include Disney, Lionsgate, and Fidelity Management & Research Company.
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- Atom Tickets is Optimistic About Movie Theaters' Future - dot.LA ›